Margarita
Station is accredited by the Department of
Tourism.
Due to the numerous questions received
in the past, we have compiled this tourist information for individuals
planning to travel to Angeles in the near future. We hope this
answers any questions you may have about a trip to Angeles City. This page
is reviewed every 30-45 days, but it is only updated when something
significant changes. If you have any questions not
answered here, just send us an email at theville.mgr@gmail.com
Getting There
|
|
 |
 |
Airlines
|
The airport is located 4-5 miles away
from most of the hotels you might select in Angeles City.
You can contact Margarita
Station for a car to pick you up at the airport
[DETAILS] for P350 (about $7).
Many hotels will pick you up at the airport, but only the
ABC will offer to do it for free. Some charge per
passenger, so check before you ask your hotel for an airport
pickup. As of March 2010 there is a official Jeepney
shuttle service that will take you to the Main Gate for P
30, but I have yet to receive feedback from anyone that has
used this service. From the main gate you can catch a
trike to most hotels for about P50-150 depending on the
distance. I recommend you avoid the taxis and "limo
services" based at the airport as they will cost you much
more than having a private car waiting for you. |
|
|
|
International Flights into Clark (Angeles
City)
CEBU
PACIFIC
now flies direct into Clark from Bangkok
with three flights a week.
This
was a great deal for a while when the flights were midday, but
now these flights are very late at night. The flight from
Bangkok doesn't arrive until 4 am (if it is on time). And,
to make the flights more popular, they doubled the price.
So, now you can usually get a 15 day ticket on Philippine
Airlines (MNL > BKK > MNL) for $80-100 less than the "budget
airline" Cebu Pacific, and PAL has great flight times and their
flights include a meal and drinks at no extra charge. Also
keep in mind that Cebu Pacific is probably the least customer
orientated airline in business today. If you want to
change the date on one day of your flight, the charge is usually
more than it costs to buy another ticket. Furthermore, if
they cancel a flight, they will assign you a different flight
either out of Manila or on a different day. Refunds for
unused tickets are as unlikely as a major snow storm in Angeles
City.
Asiana Airlines
now flies direct into Clark from Korea.
with five flights a week.
All flights go through Seoul and some have long layovers there. For
example the flight from Clark to LA leaves Clark at 1:35 am and gets into
Incheon (Seoul) at 6:35 am, but the connection to LA doesn't depart until
4:30 pm.
TIGER AIR
Tiger Asia has three
flights a week to Clark from Changi airport in Singapore.
AIR ASIA
Air Asia
has daily flights (or 14 flights a week) to Clark from Kuala Lumpur and Kota Kinabalu. Daily flights from Kuala Lumpur
will reach Clark at 10:30 a.m. and leave 30 minutes later. Daily flights from
Kota Kinabalu will arrive at 2:30 p.m. and leave by 3 p.m. An Air Asia
representative said "If
these flights prove successful, there will be additional flights to and from
Bangkok or any other point in Thailand."
NOTES:
1)
All these flights are
still classified as TEMPORARY?":
"Luciano says the budget carriers have been allowed to operate flights
to and from Clark based on loose agreements under the EO 219’s liberalized
aviation policy in Clark. The formal agreements under a country-to-country air
services agreement, which require a political process of negotiating for
entitlements, public hearings, and the like, will be done afterward. The budget carriers have been given temporary operating permits, renewable
every month—a tedious process in an uncertain environment. Generally, airlines
sell tickets that can be used for a period longer than one month. “There are more airlines interested in Clark, but they want permanent
permits. They want to feel secure. What we have for now is a shortcut to the
process because time is of the essence,” Luciano says. “Our neighbors are
leaving us behind.”
2) Tiger,
Cebu Pacific and Air Asia are "No-Frills" flights. They
don't serve food & drinks for free, but you can buy drinks on board. I
usually pick up some bottled water once I'm in the terminal. This is now
allowed both at Clark and in Bangkok.
NOTE: Baggage allowance is limited on
these flights (generally 10-20 kilos) and the over weight charges are
high.
3)
Airport Departure fee at DMIA (Clark) is currently P 500 vs
the P 750 at NAIA (Manila).
4) PICK-UPS at CLARK Not yet a great business
to bring a driver in at an odd time for a 1 hour job as we must pay them for a
set number of hours. We currently provide the service for P350. We use
our air-conditioned service vehicle which isn't a limo by any means, but it is
good enough to get you to your hotel with a great air-conditioner.
|
|
Domestic
SEAIR
no longer operates between
Angeles & Manila. They currently have daily flights from
Clark to Boracay (and to Cebu through Boracay).
Flight Schedule is subject to
change. See http://www.flyseair.com/flightscheda.htm
for current schedule information and ticket prices.
|
|
Space Available Military
Air: The RAO in Angeles
is managing space A for outgoing flights. For the last 6-8
months we have been getting a weekly update on Space A flights.
There are usually 6-10 flights a week with the seats available
listed at "UNK." For a copy of the latest message, contact
the RAO at
raoemo@sbcglobal.net You should check with
your local MAC Terminal for more information on inbound
flights. All military flights into
Clark are subject to last minute cancellations due to politics, typhoons,
maintenance, etc.
|
 |
Autos - Vans - Taxis
Angeles City is about a two hour
ride (80 kilometers) north of Nino Aquino International Airport in Manila.
Once
you go through the toll gates it is about a 50 minute ride to
Angeles. The average commute from the airport to your
hotel is just over 2 hours, but it can take over 3 hours in
heavy traffic caused by accidents or heavy tropical rains. |
|
|
Private
Car
Margarita Station is now using a
Toyota van for airport pickups. This is the top of the line van that
we could find in the Philippines. It has two big comfortable bucket seats
and a single bench seat in
the rear. The passengers have control of the air-conditioned and stereo (with
CD/VCD player) from the rear. When our van is busy, or if customers want a
smaller vehicle we can contract vehicles from a reliable company in Angeles
City. Our drivers can monitor flight arrival times and they will wait for
delayed flights. All vehicles are equipped with coolers with your
choice of cold drinks at a marginal cost.
The cost for a
airport pick-up are on our PICKUP page. For more detailed information about
our airport pick-up service, please see our AIRPORT PICK UP PAGE. You can
email your reservations for an airport pick-up by using the form available
on the airport pick up page, or contact our reservations department at:
theville.angeles@gmail.com
or reservations@theville.com
|
|
Taxi The taxi's outside the arrival area of the airport are notorious
for high prices and not using their meters. If you elect to take a taxi
into Manila, or direct to Angeles, I recommend exiting the terminal
building and climbing the stairs (one level) to the departure entrance.
The taxi's in this area are ones passengers took to the airport (vs. the
"airport taxis" downstairs). In the departure area you should be able to
get a taxi to go downtown that will use his meter. A taxi to almost
anywhere in Manila should be less than P125 (about $2.50). A taxi from the
airport to Angeles will be between P2400 and P3000. The driver probably
won't start his meter as at this price he isn't telling the owner of the
taxi that he made the trip. I do not recommend taking a taxi to Angeles
if: a) you are alone, b) you have never been to the Philippines before, or
c) at night.
|
WARNING: Never get in a taxi that has anyone
in it other than the driver.
|
|
|
Rental Car Avis and several other car rental agencies have cars available at
the airport for approximately $80-130 per day. I strongly recommend against
the use of a rental car if you are unfamiliar with driving in the
Philippines. If you select this option, your home country license is good
for 90 days, but you are better off to get a International Drivers License
before you leave home. In the USA you can get them from AAA. Some agencies
offer rental cars with a driver for an additional fee (usually P 800-1000
per day).
|
 |
Buses |
|
Southern Cross Shuttle
The Southern Cross Shuttle now provides daily bus service between
Angeles & Manila and Angeles & Subic. This is a nice new motor
coach with a very comfortable interior.
|
Angeles - Subic |
Angeles - Manila |
 |
 |
| Departs Brass Knob in Angeles:
9 am |
Departs Brass Knob in Angeles:
1 pm |
| Departs Wild Orchid Baloy Beach
11 am |
Dpts Southern Cross Hotel in Ermita 3:30 pm |
|
|
Fly the
Bus There is a non stop bus service
between Manila & Angeles called Fly The Bus. In the past
we have received numerous complaints about this service so we stopped
recommending it. A while back it was sold and is now under new management. Initial
feedback for several individuals was that the service is
much better. If you have used this
service recently, please give us some feedback at
theville.mgr@gmail.com
|
|
Air Con
Tourist Bus
The major bus companies have several busses to Angeles
every thirty minutes to one hour, 24-hours a day. The two best busses are
the Rabbit Bus or the Victory Liner. Simply take a taxi to the proper
terminal and when you purchase a ticket, the agent will tell you which bus
to board. Cost is approximately $2.50 (in pisos).
**BEWARE that these
busses have been subject to armed robberies throughout the years. The last
I read about was in late 2009. Is it really worth saving a few dollars to take a
chance?? |
Money/Checks |
|
|
|
Exchange
Rate
The exchange rate for US dollars is currently about
P
44. : $1.
Most major currencies can be changed at
money changers throughout Angeles City. Margarita Station currently
changes US$, Aust $, British Pounds, Yen and American Express
Travelers Checks (except ones issued in some African countries) .
|
|
Travelers Checks Historically, it has been hard to find anyone that will change
travelers checks in Angeles City. There continues to be people
cashing stolen travelers checks in Angeles. Since the business does not get
reimbursed for these checks even if we have evidence that it was redeemed
by the individual that purchased the checks, the rate for travelers checks
is significantly lower than cash.
We are currently exchanging American Express travelers
checks from 9 AM until 5 PM
only. However, our current rate for travelers checks
is usually about 2 pisos per dollar less than we give for cash because our
bank holds these checks for 30 days AND there is still a risk that we will
receive $0 for any check. We do require you to leave a photo
copy of your passport and the purchase receipt.
|
|
Cash
Advances on Credit Cards/ATM's There are a few places in Angeles to get a cash advance on a
credit card, but all will charge you 7.5 to 10 percent.
|
|
ATM machines: There are now ATM's at numerous locations
in Angeles and on
Clark. Additionally, there are now ATM's in the SM mall
only a few blocks from Margarita Station. Reports on what machines work at which banks
change almost daily. If you are planning on using ATM's in Angeles,
I recommend you contact Rick at
angeleswizard@gmail.com for
the latest information.
| BANK |
CARDS
ACCEPTED IN ATM |
LOCATION |
| PNB |
Master Card, Cirrus, Visa, & Visa Plus |
Angeles (Main Branch) |
| METRO |
Master Card |
Dau & Angeles |
| PCI |
Master Card & Cirrus |
Angeles, Miranda Street |
| BPI |
Global Access/Cirrus |
Clark - Other Branches in Angeles |
| BPI (Not Family Bank) |
American Express |
|
|
NOTE: Manila has
several banks that will take other cards - Citibank, Bank of
America, Etc. You can get a local ATM card at PCI banks with a
minimum deposit of P2,000. There are hundreds of banks in the
Philippines that accept PCI ATM cards. Nice to have in-lieu of
carrying cash. CIRRUS International ATM cards are also available
with a $500 minimum deposit at PCI
Bank. |
|
Hotels |
|
|
Hotel
information is now on a separate page.
General Info
|
|
|
|
Angeles City is a fairly safe town when compared with an American city of the same population. It is
generally safe to roam the tourist district even after dark as long as you
practice the same precautions you would at home. There are occasionally assaults on dark side streets in town. Therefore, we recommend that
you take a trike or taxi from the tourist district to your hotel or
apartment after dark.
Brownouts are still a common
occurrence in the Philippines. The power may be reliable for weeks,
but you can still expect a loss of
power during heavy tropical rains - most common Jun to Nov, and at any
time. If you like
to watch TV or stay up on world news, we have cable TV with over 30 channels
including: CNN, Fox News, HBO, Cinemax, VH1, MTV, Star, and Star Movies. This is far more channels than you will receive
anywhere else in the Philippines, including Manila.
For more information on Angeles City,
[CLICK HERE] |
Snail
Mail |
|
|
|
If you are planning to be in Angeles City for awhile, you can have
mail sent to Margarita Station. Have your friends address your mail to you
at Margarita
Station, 940 Fields Avenue, Balibago 2009, Angeles City ,
Philippines. When regular mail arrives the cashier will
post the addressees name on the notice board. There is no charge for this
service. |
Email
|
|
|
|
The internet has been available in Angeles City tourist district since Sep 1996.
There are now internet cafes throughout the
entertainment district. Most of the major hotels have internet
connections available in the rooms, and several have
wireless internet available in their restaurant & bar area. Some
internet cafe's offer faster speed at a real
premium price. (Heck, I can only type so fast!) Still others
have a minimum charge. It pays to ask before
you sit down. |
Night Life |
|
|
|
Angeles City has one of the most active night-time entertainment
districts in the Asia. There are approximately seventy five bars
concentrated into about five city blocks in Balibago. And no, they are not
all "girly" bars. These establishments range from quiet pubs, to
top-of-the-line "Manila style" bars like the
Forbidden City. If you are a frustrated singer,
there are about forty karaoke's spread throughout Angeles. One of the most
popular for EXPATS is the one above Tequila Reef in the heart of
the entertainment district. And yes, if you
are looking for "girly" bars there are plenty of them in Angeles, but it
is a town where you can bring your wife or girlfriend and enjoy the town.
If you do have a companion with you, check out
Heaven Above or
the Sky Bar on top of the ABC Hotel. If you are looking for a girly bar, give
Dirty Duck,
La Pasha or Fantasy a visit. Use these bars to judge the
rest. |
Medical Facilities |
|
|
|
Angeles University Hospital offers us good quality medical care.
About 2 hours away, Saint Luke's Medical Center, the best hospital in the country, offers a complete regional medical center.
Health insurance policies
that include basic dental checkup, an annual physical, emergency medical
treatment, private room, etc. are available starting at P 7,500 per year.
(Yes, that's about $150 per
year). Contact Dave at
vegasdave4@yahoo.com for more information on insurance options.
|
|
